8:00 pm – Ground War4/11 – Warrior Weapons
This episode traces the evolution of soldiers and their gear, from the phalanx formations of Alexander the Great to the the development of wearable exoskeletons that will one day soon make human soldiers stronger and faster.

4/18 – Battlefield Mobility
This episode explores mobility on the battlefield and the never-ending challenge to maximize effectiveness and find the right balance of protective armor, speed, mobility and firepower.

4/25 – Firepower
This episode tracks the development of artillery from the ancient Greeks through the invention of gunpowder in China, to the very latest generation of big guns and directed-energy weapons.

9:00 pm – Ottomans Versus Christians: Battle for the Mediterranean4/11 – Empire Builders
In part one, Julian Davison begins his journey in Istanbul, the gateway between East and West and former epicenter of the Eastern Christian Empire of Byzantium. He charts the rise of the Ottomans and their momentous conquest of Constantinople, which they transform into the capitol of their empire, Istanbul.

4/18 – Masters Of The Mediterranean
In part two, Julian Davison travels to the site of one of the most extraordinary sieges in European history, the island of Malta. During 16th century it was the object of desire for Ottoman Sultan Sulieman the Magnificent and he was prepared to risk all to possess it. Here, Julian enlists in a local re-enactment group and tries his hand at the weapons of the day before dissecting a siege that would become one of the Ottomans’ most shocking defeats.

4/25 – Clash Of Civilizations
Part three begins in the legendary city of Famagusta on the island of Cyprus. Once the wealthiest city on earth, Famagusta was the jewel in the Venetian crown when Ottoman armies surrounded it in 1571. Julian Davison takes us on a tour of the city’s magnificent gothic cathedrals and intimidating fortress, detailing the gory battles and fabled acts of heroism that took place here during the Ottoman conquest of the city.

9:55 pm – She-Wolves: England’s Early Queens4/11 – Matilda And Eleanor
More than 800 years ago, Matilda came within a hair’s breadth of being the first woman to be crowned queen of England in her own right. Her daughter-in-law Eleanor of Aquitaine was an equally formidable woman. Despite being remembered as the queen of courtly love, in reality, during her long life she divorced one king and married another, only to lead a rebellion against him. She finally achieved the power she craved in her seventies.

4/18 – Isabella And Margaret
In 1308 a 12-year-old girl, Isabella of France, became queen of England when she married the English king. A century later another young French girl, Margaret of Anjou, followed in her footsteps. Both these women were thrust into a violent and dysfunctional England and both felt driven to take control of the kingdom themselves.

4/25 – Jane, Mary And Elizabeth
In this program, Helen Castor looks at what happened when England was faced not just with inadequate kings, but no kings at all. In 1553, for the first time in English history, all the contenders for the crown were female. In the lives of these three Tudor queens – Jane, Mary and Elizabeth – Castor explores how each woman struggled in turn with wearing a crown that was made for a male head.